FBI raids Pittsford offices of big area developer

Tuesday

May 15, 2018 at 7:36 AMMay 15, 2018 at 7:36 AM

Pinnacle North in Canandaigua is one of many projects of Bob Morgan whose Pittsford offices were raided

PITTSFORD — Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided the Pittsford offices of one of the area’s biggest developers on Monday. FBI agents arrived at Morgan Communities in Pittsford just before 9 a.m. and spent most of the day inside.

Agents wouldn’t say what, specifically, they were looking for or seized from Morgan Communities, owned by developer Bob Morgan. The FBI would only say that they were there to conduct “court-authorized” activity. As of Monday, no one had been arrested.

Last fall, deals by Morgan were under a federal investigation.

Morgan and his company are behind numerous area projects including three in Canandaigua: Pinnacle North Apartments at 20 North Shore Blvd; CenterPointe Apartments and Townhomes at 5570 Centerpointe Blvd; and The Links at CenterPointe Townhomes at 2227 Brickyard Road.

In Monroe County, projects include the proposal for Parcel 5 at Midtown and Tower 280, along with the new apartments being built next to Dinosaur Bar-B-Que on Court Street and the housing projects near the George Eastman House and the Rochester Museum & Science Center.

Messenger Post news partner News 10NBC saw agents coming and going from the Morgan building in Pittsford all day Monday. At times, agents were bringing large boxes to their vehicles before leaving. Bob Morgan was at his office during the raid, at one point speaking with colleagues and attorneys outside.

Bob Morgan would not respond to questions, saying “no comment” as he drove away.

When Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren was asked about it, she stated: "We believe in the justice system, as an attorney, of course people are innocent until proven guilty and we know everyone will do their due-diligence in their review of this process.”

What about the Morgan-backed projects either underway or in the works?

"They have done a lot of work for our city and contributed to its revitalization," Warren stated. "I think that going forward, as I said, for the city of Rochester, we have not had any issues of concern that have been brought to us by authorities. So, we will proceed with the work that is going on in our community."

Officials with Monroe County, which has offered Morgan tax breaks on a number of his projects, said Monday they had not received any subpoenas for information or calls of concern from the FBI.